The Ministry of Power has directed all States and Union Territories to waive the requirement of separate Net Metering Agreements and simplify procedures to encourage faster adoption of rooftop solar systems under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGY). The scheme, launched in February 2024, aims to increase the share of solar rooftop capacity in the country and empower residential households to generate their own electricity. It represents a major step toward strengthening energy independence and promoting sustainable power generation across India.
The ministry has been regularly reviewing the progress of the PMSGY scheme and found that several consumers face procedural hurdles in setting up rooftop solar systems. To ensure widespread adoption and timely implementation, the ministry has advised distribution utilities to remove such procedural complexities and introduce consumer-friendly measures.
Under sub-rule 10 of rule 4 of the Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, 2020, if an agreement is required between a distribution licensee and a consumer, it becomes part of the application form, and there is no need for a separate agreement. Referring to this rule, the ministry suggested doing away with the requirement of a separate Net Metering Agreement and adopting a digital agreement integrated with the online application form available on the PMSGY portal. This digital process will make the application process faster and more transparent for consumers.
The ministry also noted that several States and Union Territories have already adopted this digital form of agreement. These include Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Haryana, and Puducherry. The ministry has advised other states to follow the same approach, even for rooftop solar applications not covered under the PMSGY scheme. For such cases, states can integrate digital agreements into their online application systems for rooftop solar installations.
In addition to simplifying the agreement process, the Ministry of Power has also advised states and utilities to waive various charges currently levied on consumers for rooftop solar installations. These include application and registration fees, net meter testing fees, and commissioning fees. The ministry mentioned that 17 States and Union Territories have already waived these charges. Utilities are being encouraged to instead take advantage of incentives offered by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) under the PMSGY scheme to compensate for any revenue loss.
The ministry emphasized that these steps are necessary to make rooftop solar installations more affordable and convenient for consumers. It has requested all States and Union Territories to take prompt action to implement these measures and inform the Ministry of Power once they are in place. The directive, issued with the approval of the competent authority, aims to promote faster solar adoption at the household level and strengthen Indiaโs transition toward clean and sustainable energy.
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Main problem in wider adoption of this rooftop Solar is that most subsidy are gobbled as margins by the various agencies and the subsidy only shows up as eye wash as the cost of parts and services are significantly higher when compared to buying the same in open market. For e.g. a 3kw panel cost <60k but is charges close to 1 lac.
In kerala, lot of issues.. They are not following MNRE and PMSGY. Pls instruct central power ministry to intervention with kerala government, like they planning to withdraw net metering, charging fc for self generated units etc.. Lot of changes planning against prosumers.
Before invest in roof top solar ask solar installer to give commercial calculations what investor get from electricity board.